Reforming special education in Scotland: tensions between discourses of professionalism and rights

In 2001, the (then) Scottish Executive embarked on a process of reform of the SEN framework in Scotland. This paper analyses negotiations between different social actors, principally local authority staff and parents, in the formation of the legislation and its subsequent enactment. Data are drawn from an analysis of responses to consultations, official statistics and parent and local authority staff perceptions of the reforms as revealed in questionnaire surveys. It is argued that policy frameworks based on professionalism and bureaucracy have tended to dominate in Scotland, with a rights framework emerging much more recently. The legislation attempts to strike a balance between the different actors, although, in implementing the legislation, local authorities have sought to neutralise aspects which they felt tipped the balance of power too far in favour of parents. Parents have responded by campaigning as citizen‐consumers, and appear to be having a growing influence on Government.     

High‐quality interactions with infants: relationships with early‐childhood practitioners’ interpretations and qualification levels in play and routine contexts

This study investigated factors related to the quality of early‐childhood practitioners’ interactions with infants in play and routine contexts. Participants were 24 practitioners working with 9–20‐month‐old infants in long day‐care infant programmes. Video‐recordings of their interactions with a nominated infant during play and in routine contexts were rated for levels of sensitivity and stimulation. Practitioners were asked to interpret extracts of this video footage and these interpretations were rated according to the complexity of the interpretive narrative. Results indicated relationships between practitioner qualification, their levels of interpretive complexity and the quality of their interactions. The quality of play interactions was significantly higher than that of routine interaction. The implications of these findings in relation to the provision of high‐quality infant day‐care programmes are discussed.     

On the Perceived Quality of Movies

We address the question of the quality of movies produced between 1950 and 1970. A first outcome of our analysis is that the quality assessments made during the Cannes Festival, and to a lesser degree, by the U.S. Academy are short-lasting. In contrast to this, consumers seem consistent over time. There is, however, one issue on which experts agree as well as consumers: American movies dominate both in terms of commercial success and in terms of quality. There is less agreement, and sometimes there is even dissent concerning other dimensions. This does not come as a surprise and merely indicates that there is hardly a common yardstick along which the quality of a movie can be measured. Therefore, decomposing a work of art into quantifiable characteristics – even in a subjective but possibly unanimous way – would make it possible to explain the divergences between audiences and changes of appreciation over time.     

Language, literacy and bilingual education: An amazon people's strategies for cultural maintenance

This paper is concerned with the rights of indigenous peoples to maintain their own languages which are seen as fundamental to the maintenance of their own cultures and for the transmission of culture from one generation to another. Taking the examples of two small neighbouring groups belonging to the Harakmbut Amazon people, it shows that even though their objectives are the same — the maintenance and strengthening of their language and culture — they have very different views about how this should be done. The paper argues that it is necessary to understand the communities' reactions to new proposals for language maintenance introduced from outside and of the importance of them developing and following their own strategies for maintaining their cultural identity in a rapidly changing world.     

The effects of skin and core tissue cooling on oxygenation of the vastus lateralis muscle during walking and running

Skin and core tissue cooling modulates skeletal muscle oxygenation at rest. Whether tissue cooling also influences the skeletal muscle deoxygenation response during exercise is unclear. We evaluated the effects of skin and core tissue cooling on skeletal muscle blood volume and deoxygenation during sustained walking and running. Eleven male participants walked or ran six times on a treadmill for 60 min in ambient temperatures of 22°C (Neutral), 0°C for skin cooling (Cold 1), and at 0°C following a core and skin cooling protocol (Cold 2). Difference between oxy/deoxygenated haemoglobin ([diffHb]: deoxygenation index) and total haemoglobin content ([tHb]: total blood volume) in the vastus lateralis (VL) muscle was measured continuously. During walking, lower [tHb] was observed at 1 min in Cold 1 and Cold 2 vs. Neutral (P?0.05). Lower [diffHb] was seen at 1 and 10 min in Cold 2 vs. Neutral by 13.5 ± 1.2 µM and 15.3 ± 1.4 µM and Cold 1 by 10.4 ± 3.1 µM and 11.1 ± 4.1 µM, respectively (P?0.05). During running, [tHb] was lower in Cold 2 vs. Neutral at 10 min only (P = 0.004). [diffHb] was lower at 1 min in Cold 2 by 11.3 ± 3.1 µM compared to Neutral and by 13.5 ± 2.8 µM compared to Cold 1 (P?0.001). Core tissue cooling, prior to exercise, induced greater deoxygenation of the VL muscle during the early stages of exercise, irrespective of changes in blood volume. Skin cooling alone, however, did not influence deoxygenation of the VL during exercise.     

Some Recent Developments in Teacher Education in Mathematics and Science: A Review and Commentary

Teacher preparation in science and mathematics will be best served, says the author of this roundup, by improvements both in the pedagogy and content of the undergraduate science and mathematics courses required of future teachers and in the reform of required science and mathematics methods courses. In a review of the history and politics of teacher education, the author underscores the twin goals of achieving program coherence and higher standards. She compares the place of mathematics education in mathematics departments with that of science education in science departments and recommends the replacement of bare bones methods courses with those combining pedagogy and content. Included is a selective bibliography.     

Visions to Guide Performance: A Typology of Multiple Future Organizational Images

Organizational performance is highly influenced by how employees envision the future. To date, many scholars have emphasized the importance of an overarching future vision that unites all stakeholders, while acknowledging the presence of divergent perspectives among members. This variety in perspectives may be further complicated in organizations undergoing great stress and where the leadership has not defined and promoted a future vision to guide the content of the images of its members. Little study has explored the various types of future organizational images that exist or the nature of those images. We explore these concerns via a case study of an airline in the midst of a dramatic fight for survival. The findings both confirm the existence of multiple views for the company's future and delineate their general characteristics through a typology of imagery. We conclude with a language to use to differentiate those images for future research and offer practical implications for managing multiple future organizational images to mobilize energy and enhance performance in a more unified direction.     

The Use of Pre-Hire Assessment Tools for Manufacturing Direct Labor

Attendant to the changing profile of the labor pool are shifts in norms and expectations that complicate worker recruitment, hiring, and retention. As labor pool, economic, and organizational characteristics change, two issues emerge: first, the growing need to efficiently coordinate available workers with the work that needs to be done, and second, strategies for organizations to use need to be developed. Leontiefs Input/Output Theory has been used to illustrate issues related to coordination of labor, and two pre-employment tests have been studied to determine the effectiveness of pre-employment testing strategies. Pre-employment test scores obtained in an expanding contract electronics manufacturing firm have been analyzed to determine the relationships that may exist between test scores and employee success. Success has been defined as performance and retention. Multiple regression and discriminant analyses revealed several statistically significant results, including a relationship between Working Safety-test scores and performance, and Job Candidate Profile scores and retention. While interesting in and of themselves, the results further suggest that variables exist, other than those studied, that arc important to the selection of successful employees.